Conventionally, control flaps that are used to vary the profile of a wing, in particular of the carrying airfoil of an aircraft, but also to vary the profile of rudders and elevators, are made as rigid wing components. By way of these, deflection of the flow on the wing is not optimal from the point of view of aerodynamics, and furthermore the load distribution is unfavourable because the linking of the control flap to individual attachment positions on the wing results in relatively large local stress.